Taylor Swift postpones Rio concert after fan dies amid heatwave
Taylor Swift’s concert in Brazil on Saturday night has been postponed after a fan died shortly before the start of her gig in Rio de Janeiro on Friday.
The show’s organisers, Time4Fun (T4F), said in a statement that paramedics had attended to Ana Clara Benevides Machado, 23, at the concert venue and taken her to a hospital, where she died an hour later.
Swift announced the postponement on her Instagram story and wrote: “I’m writing this from my dressing room in the stadium. The decision has been made to postpone tonight’s show due to the extreme temperatures in Rio. The safety and wellbeing of my fans, fellow performers and crew always has to come first.”
Much of Brazil has seen record-breaking temperatures this week and the daytime high in Rio on Friday was 39.1C.
Earlier, Swift, 33, said she was “devastated” at the news of the fan’s death and was “overwhelmed by grief”.
The singer said: “I can’t believe I’m writing these words but it is with shattered heart that I say we lost a fan earlier tonight before my show. I can’t even tell you how devastated I am by this.
“There’s very little information I have, other than the fact that she was so incredibly beautiful and far too young.”
Swift said her heart went out to the fan’s family and friends, and it was the “last thing I thought would happen when we decided to bring this tour to Brazil”.
Brazilian daily newspaper Fohla de S Paulo reported that the fan had collapsed at the show and had a cardiac arrest. Concertgoers had reported sweltering conditions at the Estádio Olímpico Nilton Santos, where the event was held.
Swift briefly paused the show so water could be given out to fans, and could later be seen throwing a bottle of water to the crowd while she was singing. They had been heard chanting: “Water, water, water, water.”
Brazil’s justice minister, Flávio Dino, said on X that the ministry would implement “emergency rules” regarding access to water at shows and other public events.
Rio de Janeiro’s mayor, Eduardo Paes, said on X that the “loss of a young woman’s life … is unacceptable”.
While authorities are investigating the circumstances of the death, Paes wrote, the municipality will demand that the show’s production company provide new water distribution points and more ambulances, and that entry be advanced by one hour.
After Rio de Janeiro, Swift, one of the bestselling musicians of all time, will play three shows in São Paulo, the last this year as part of her two-year world tour.
Swift will begin the UK leg of the tour in June 2024, playing three shows in Edinburgh, three in Liverpool and one in Cardiff, before a series of London concerts at Wembley that end in August.
